Black Sand Experiment
by Lliri
Summary: Pitch was defeated less than a month ago, but strange things are already happening. Children are going missing. Nightmares are gaining power, and fear has wormed it's way deep in the heart of every child. Even MIM dosen't know what it going on. Jack is their last hope, but can he put together the peices of the puzzle before it is to late?
1. Chapter 1

Jack swooped, clutching his staff. Before defeating Pitch and finding a new family, the guardians, being alone felt like the worst fate he could suffer. But lately, being alone seemed infinity preferable to being around the guardians. Today, he had swept out of the pole in a blind panic after being chased around by Tooth's mini fairy's. They had chased him for two hours. Two hours! He closed his eyes for a second, wincing at the painful memory. Being chased by tiny fairy's sounds funny, but in reality...

His eyes popped open. Something didn't feel right. He glanced around. All he could hear was the normal city sounds. Cars honking, muted pop music, and underneath it all, a constant babble of voices melded together, creating an unfamiliar harmony to the winter spirit. He scanned his surroundings. Apart from the distant throng of earthbound humans, he seemed to be alone. What was wrong?

He shook his head. _Stop being silly. Nothing is wrong. You just defeated Pitch less than a month ago, _he thought. Shaking off those thoughts, he flew on, creating a light snowfall just for fun. Bored and wanting company, he returned to the pole.

"Jack, m'boy! How are you doing?" North boomed, beaming at Jack. Was it just him, or did North's grin border on maniac? _Two can play at this game, North. _Matching North's grin, he replied.

"I'm doing positively dandy! How about you?" As he said that, Tooth walked in, followed by a small crowd of baby fairies. Letting out a small cry of terror, Jack whooshed out the window.

Xxx

North's POV.

North was in the workshop, admiring one of his newest creations, a small model air plane, when Jack swooped in. He smiled, happy to see the winter spirit.

"Jack m'boy! How are you doing?" North asked. Jack smiled a weird, shark-like smile.

"I'm doing positively dandy! How about you?" Jack said. His lunatic smile faded, and was replaced by a look of terror. Only_ one person could make him look that scared._North thought, whirling around. Adrenaline was rushing through his system, and he was gearing up to make short work of Pitch.

"Tooth!" He smiled genially.

"Hey! I wonder what made Jack take off like that when he saw me?" Tooth asked, concerned.

"I do not know. He was acting odd when he got here." North said. Baby Tooth was babbling nonsense in Tooth's ear, however, and his words went unheeded.

"Baby Tooth says that the other fairies spent two hours chasing Jack around the pole, trying to inspect his teeth." Tooth laughed. North joined in, relieved. A few seconds later, Bunnymund turned up. Predictably, he looked grumpy.

"Where's Frostbite?" He asked in greeting.

Xxx

Jack's POV

When Jack saw the fairies, his first thought was to get away as far as possible. Now, he was riding the air somewhere along the north coast of the US. The area was unfamiliar to him, but he didn't mind. He surveyed the air. Nothing but fluffy white clouds and the occasional bird. That pretty picture was only ruined when he looked down.

Outside in the frigid winter air, about 20 children were led outside. They walked in a circle, once around a closed in yard, and went back inside.

Jack didn't know much of American culture, but he was fairly sure that was not normal. A nagging feeling reminded him that he needed to go meet with the guardians, but he decided that he would return to that place as soon as possible.

_ Several minutes later..._

"So, erm, I have some bad news." North mumbled, exchanging looks with Sandy and Tooth. Silence in the room. Then-

"Why do I feel so out of the loop? Whats going on?" Bunnymund asked. Jack silently agreed, not that he would ever admit to it.

"Well, Sandy and Tooth report seeing unusual amounts of nightmare sand as they do their nightly rounds. We... I think that means that Pitch is trying to do something. We are not sure what." North stated. That was followed by several minutes of useless speculation. Jack was in another world.

_What was going on with those kids on the North coast of the US? What is Pitch up to? Why is all of this happening so soon after defeating him, there's no way he could of regained his strength that fast. Could it be... nah. Or maybe... no, that's not his style. Or maybe, maybe he's planning to-_

"What do you think, Frostbite?" Bunnymund asked, disrupting Jack's train of thought.

"Uh... I don't really know." Jack answered.

"It's not like you to hold back. I thought you'd be jumping at this chance." Bunnymund said, but his gaze was clearly asking something. _Huh?_

"Uh, sorry. I was thinking. What are you talking about?" Jack said, absentmindedly.

"We were going to find Pitch and get some answers out of him, of course! Not losing your nerve, are you Frostbite?" Bunnymund said.

"Course not, but I have some stuff to take care of first. Rain check?" Jack asked, but before anyone could answer him, he was already gone.

"Kid's scared. I can't say I blame him." Bunnymund said wisely. _No, _North thought. _Being scared has nothing to do with it._


	2. Ring Around the Rosie

**Previously... After being chased from the pole by ****fairies****, Jack ****sees**** a strange sight. Pitch is back up to his old tricks, and the guardians are going to fight him. Bunnymund doubts ****Jack's nerve.**

For the third time that day, Jack was soaring over the countryside after leaving the pole in a rush. _Why don't the guardians understand? Just rushing into battle like that doesn't feel right. _He just needed some time to clear his mind. Irrationally, he felt himself drawn back to the north coast of the US, to the.. place, for lack of a better name. He drifted by the front of the building. LONG TERM CHILDCARE FACILITY, a sign read in all capital letters. In smaller letters underneath, it read "Libertas Derelicta." He didn't know what that meant, but it felt important. With a distinct feeling of Deja Vu, he returned to the pole. North would know what it meant. He felt sure of that, at least.

XXX

_Several minutes later__…_

_ "_Libertas Derelicta? Jack, where did you see this?" North said. Something in his expression didn't bode well. Jack made no comment, just waited.

"Libertas means freedom, in Latin." North started, but then he paused, a concerned expression on his face. Jack, on the other hand, felt optimistic.

"But Derelicta, that means... Forsaken. Freedom forsaken." North said. A chill went down Jack's frozen spine.

"I have to go back." Jack said.

"Wait!" North yelled before Jack could even take a step.

"Wait." He repeated, more calmly this time.

"We have decided to search for Pitch. You see, we would love to fight him... But we can't even find him. Bunnymund is taking Australia and Africa. Tooth is taking South America; I am taking Antarctica and the North Pole. You are going to search North America and Europe. Report back in a day. No stopping for snowball fights, Jack!" North yelled after his retreating form.

For once, Jack actually did what North said. He diligently searched all of Europe first. There was no sign of Pitch, except for his black nightmare sand. There was no luck in Canada, or the USA. _Where is he?_ Defeated, Jack started to go back to the Pole, but something drew him back to the children's home. Libertas Derelicta. Freedom Forsaken. Now, he was no expert on ominous sign's but that wasn't a bad sign, nothing was.

He walked into the yard, where the children were sitting. Some of them were playing half-heartedly with some rocks and sticks, but most were just sitting there with an empty look in their eyes. Jack approached a cute little blonde girl, who couldn't have been more than 7.

She walked right through him. She was followed by another… and another… and another. He had turned away when he felt a tugging at his sleeve.

"Are you new here?" A little girl asked. She had curly brown hair, pinkish skin, and big blue eyes. She looked to be about 8.

"Nah, I'm just visiting." Jack replied.

"But we never get visitors! What's going on?" Her voice was plaintive and innocent, but underneath it, Jack sensed intelligence. Nothing got past this kid.

"Well, actually, I'm hoping that you can tell me a bit more about this place. Why are all of you here?" He replied.

"I can't remember, I've been here too long. We're not allowed talking about it." She said sharply.

"And what do you do here? Do you go out often?" He asked.

"Nah. Not allowed. My names Rosie, by the way." Rosie said.

"Well Rosie, what can you tell me about this place? Do you know why the motto was picked out, for example?" Jack asked.

"I don't know what the motto means. As for what I know about this place, well, I know that we learn about science and math and every night, we are read a different fairy story. You look a bit like Jack Frost, from one of the first legends I remember hearing. He is supposed to be very brave, but very weak at the same time." She said. Her blue eyes bored into Jack. _Ok, this is weird. _He thought.

"I don't really know you, but I'm going to tell you something." She said.

"Sure thing. What is it?" He asked.

"Something is going on here. You see, I think that some of the other children… well, it's complicated. It all started with…"


	3. A Pocket full of Poseys

** Previously... Jack found out that Libertas Derelicta means freedom forsaken. The guardians searched the globe for Pitch, but didn't find him. Rosie is about to confide something in him.**

"It all started with Winnie. She is in the same dorm as me. I woke up one night, after having a nightmare, and normally she comforts me, but this time she was gone. I walked down the hall to see if she was in the washroom, but she wasn't there. I was wandering around a bit, and I heard something. Some of the caregivers were talking, muttering about something not working. They wanted to improve something before someone came. I went back to sleep, and when I woke up the next morning, an hour before the wake-up call, Winnie was back, but she had all this black... stuff surrounding her, and she was talking in her sleep." Rosie finished talking and looked at Jack. _The black stuff must be nightmare sand... and the person they wanted it for must be Pitch... __but why? And what are they doing? _He wondered.

"OK Rosie. Tonight, I am going to watch over you. You're right, something is up. But I'll get to the bottom of it. Don't worry about it." Jack said. His words seemed to comfort the little girl, and she waved goodbye to him before skipping off happily to join her friends. Jack inspected the whole facility for any signs of Pitch, or nightmare sand, or mysterious murmurings, but he had no luck. Night fell, and he prepared for a long night of waiting.

Jack was starting to nod off at around 2 in the morning. Nothing was going to happen tonight, he was convinced of it. All of a sudden, he felt an urgent ping go off in his mind. He raced to the window. A distant shadow flickered across his field of vision. A nightmare! He launched himself into the midnight air.

"Wind! Let me follow that nightmare back to Pitch!" he said joyfully. He was so over searching for Pitch, he would defeat him single handed, and then even Bunnymund would have to admit that Jack was the right choice as a guardian, and then- Well, actually, that was assuming he could beat Pitch. His exultant smile faded. Even recovering, Pitch was dangerous. A mad Pitch wanting revenge? Fighting him didn't sound that appealing. But Jack had never backed down from a fight yet. He wasn't planning to start now…

He was thinking these thoughts, and others, while he drifted along behind the nightmare. But soon, he just got plain bored. He swooped down to give some kid's playing outside some snow, and when he looked back up for the nightmare, it was gone. Dispirited, Jack wandered back to the children's home. He sank down beside Rosie's bed, and fell asleep sitting up within seconds. Little did he know, someone was missing from the dorm.

He woke up early the next morning. Sunlight filtered through the window and he could hear the babble of exited young voices.

_Exited? No, that's not the word._

_ Happy? Calm? Definitely not. More like… Panicked and scared._

He sat bolt upright in a flash. _What's going on?_

"Rosie? Rosie!" A little girl yelled.

"Where are you?" Another voice said.

"What's going on?" A groggy, lower voice asked.

"We woke up, and Rosie wasn't there, and we can't find her anywhere!"

"Help us search; if she tried to run off again, she'll be in so much trouble."

"Rosie! ROSIE!"

Kid's from other dorms started piling in, hearing the panicked voices, and soon everyone was looking for Rosie. Jack was helping to. He ran down the halls, not even bothering to pick up his staff.

The search went on for nearly another hour. Jack had scoured every inch of the building. She wasn't there! _What if Pitch has her? _Those thoughts just sent him into a full-fledged panic.

"Bah! Why do I always mess everything up?" He yelled, grabbing his hair in his hands. Eyes shut, tugging his hair, brain whirring, useless solution after useless solution barging its way into his brain, brain shutting down, he needed to think but he couldn't, he needed to find Rosie and stop Pitch but he didn't know how, and-

Then Jack's world went black.

**I added a bit of self-doubting Jack in there, even though that annoys the chicken's outta me. The things I do to keep my characters in character…**** Well, I would love to get some reviews. Anyone? Hello? Just one review? Pretty, pretty please? (Dances around with big, innocent eyes.) No? Ok, that's cool too.**


	4. Ashes, Ashes

**Previously... Rosie went missing. While searching for her, Jack blacks out.**

"Jack! Jack!" A young voice called, over and over.

"Jack! JACK!" The voice was starting to get desperate. _Why does that voice sound familiar?_

"Sorry, Jack. I have to do this." The voice said. A sharp pain on his face.

"Why'd you slap me?" Jack asked reproachfully, sitting up. Rosie was sitting beside him. _Wait-Rosie? _Everything came back to him in a flash. Him blacking out. Rosie missing. The nightmare. He went to stand up, but the world lurched around him and the ceiling tipped upside down. He sat back down with a thump.

"OK, just give me a moment. What's going on?" He asked.

"I don't really know. I just woke up a couple minutes ago, and I was really scared, I had a nightmare about being chased by giant spiders, chanting something, and then the adults came in, and I thought that meant it was gonna be OK, and they started asking questions about my nightmares and my fears and writing it down. They seemed really happy about something, they just said that they would need to 'enhance its creation properties,' and 'decrease the possibility of fight or flight tendency's in the dormant mind. Then they left." Rosie said. Her blue eyes were wide.

"Don't worry. I think I know who's behind this, even though I don't know what's going on." Jack said. _OK, we've got nightmare sand, Pitch, mad scientists, Libertas Derelicta, small children taken away from their homes, __too__ young to remember them. Add that all together, and what do you get? Bunny__mund would say a bunch of disconnected coincidences, but something is up. I know it._

Jack really took in his surroundings for the first time. He was lying on a baking plastic floor. The room was small and painted a hideous shade of orange, probably meant to be cheerful. There was a few toys pushed to the side of the room, but other than that, the room was empty. He recognized it as the room as part of the facility. A thought struck him.

"Hey Rosie, when everyone was searching for you yesterday, a girl said that you had tried to run away before. What was that all about?" He asked.

"I had just gotten here. I wanted my parents. I ran. They brought me back, and brought me to a grey room, and I didn't see anyone for at least a week. I tried running again a few years after the first time, and they said that if I tried to run off again, I would be in really big trouble, and my parents would be very disappointed. So I didn't run. And now... now..." Her face crumpled, and she was sobbing.

"And now I'm talking to a boy who can fly from the story's they used to read, I've gone mad! He's not real! He's not; this is all a bad dream." Rosie kept crying, and when Jack went to pat her back, his hand went right through her. He had just lost a believer.

**Shout outs to Celestialstarrynight and Tastetherainbowww for being my first two reveiwers ever! Both of you are amazing. So, what will Jack do now? Will Rosie get her beleif back? Where are they? Why did Jack black out? What are the scientists talking about? QUE THE EVIL MUSIC!**


	5. We All Fall Down

** Previously... Rosie doesn't believe in Jack anymore. She also thinks she is going mad. Jack still doesn't know what is going on.**

"Rosie? You don't... believe anymore?" Jack asked uncertainly. His voice was little more than a whisper. _Oh. This is... not good. _He walked towards the orange y door and pushed it open. He didn't want to leave Rosie, in the state she was in, but what could he do? His thoughts weaved together in a relentless chant. _Nightmare sand, Pitch, Rosie, belief, mad scientists, freedom, nightmare sand, Pitch, Rosie belief, mad scientists, freedom... nightmare sand... mad scientists...that's it!_

Jack took off. He had children to help and guardians to warn.

XXX

A little later...

"Jack, what you're suggesting... that's insane. That would have taken at least a decade to prepare, and the odds are just so small... no, that can't be right." North said his brow heavy.

"I know I'm right! It all fits together! Pitch is using the scientists to improve the nightmare sand, and then they're testing it on the children! He's trying to make it better or something, I know it!" Jack yelled. _Why won't they believe me? It all fits!_

"But mate, why does Pitch need to improve his nightmare sand? It already works!" Bunnymund snarled. He had been busy in the last couple weeks, preparing for Easter, while Jack sat back and didn't help find out where Pitch was, didn't bring winter, didn't help out at all, didn't-

"What Sandy is trying to say is that it is possible to alter the sand. If we can get some sand, Sandy will be able to figure out if Pitch is changing it." Tooth cut in.

"Ok, I'll go to the children's home and get some sand, and then Sandy can look at it!" Jack said; ready to rush out the window.

"Wait!" North yelled.

"Wait. You can't just rush in to what might be a trap!" North repeated, more quietly this time.

"I have to go now, before it's too late! I'm going." Jack started towards the window, but Bunnymund grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"No way, Mate. You've been nothing but annoying lately, so just sit down and listen to us for a change!" Bunnymund yelled.

"I have to go! I have to!" Jack yelled back. _WHY don't they get it? I have to go now, or __it'll be too late. It's my fault Rosie thinks she's crazy!_

"Jack, you have to understand, this could be a trap." North said.

"Iressponsible,-"

"Dangerous,-"

"Pitch might be-"

"Guys!"

"I can't believe you would even consider-"

"Jack, you can't, what if-"

"Trying to lure you-"

"Guys!"

"Going, what if he-"

"Pitch is trying to-"

"Into a trap, and-"

"GUYS!" Jack yelled over Bunnymund, Tooth and North. Sandy had been franticly making sand images over his head. They fell into a resentful silence.

"I'm going! None of you can stop me." Jack said. He sounded 18, not over 300. Predictably, the protests began again. Jack's hands fell to his sides. He felt like throwing something. He felt like kicking something. He felt like yelling and screaming. He was just so frustrated!

North was saying something. Jack wasn't listening. He walked towards the window and took off into the breezy nighttime air. The scenery was a distant blur. It melded from snowy ice blocks to grassy hills to flashing city lights. It was really quite pretty. But tonight, all that he could focus on was his anger. At Pitch. At the guardians. At Mim.

He meandered down the halls at the children's home. There was no sign of Rosie, or any nightmare sand. The moon was full, lending a dreamlike quality to the white walls of the home. A familiar laughter echoed throughout the halls. Then, his vision went black yet again.

_Really Pitch? _Jack thought, as he drifted into unconsciousness. _This is starting to get predictable. I just didn't pick up fast enough_

**I apologize if my writing isn't up to par. I was trying out a slightly different writing style here. ****Anyhow. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, you have no idea how much I appreciate it. So. Pitch has Jack. He is gonna be in so much trouble with the guardians. Oh. Also, check out celestialstarrynight's profile, if you have time. I literally couldn't stop laughing at**** some of the things on it.**


	6. Maddness

** Previously... Pitch has Jack! Enough said. Pitch; be prepared for some angry guardians... MWA HA HA HA!**

"Guardians." Pitch's voice echoed around the room. North, Bunny, Tooth, and Sandy all whipped around at the sound of Pitch's familiar voice.

"I have Jack. I wish I could offer you some sort of bargain, I would love to see you pay. But lucky for me, I have everything I need to resume my reign of terror. Jack should be honoured. You see, while you were busy bumbling along looking for me in all the wrong places, Jack was actually figuring out what I was up to. But as usual, none of you listened. So poor little Jack went off on his own, thinking he could stop me! Ha!" Pitch laughed an empty, broken sound.

"Give it up Pitch! You aren't even close to recovered!" Bunny yelled.

"Rude, aren't we? Interrupting someone while they're talking... I will let it go through. Now, as Jack may have told you, I am trying to improve my nightmare sand. You see, the kind scientists here have been separating the different components of my sand. Now, it can create new fear, not just feed off the old fears. Even the bravest children won't be able to sleep peacefully now! My sand is perfect, but I think we have time for one last test." Pitch's voice sounded a bit like a teacher, explaining something to a younger group of students.

"The only problem is, this sand, when used for too long, has a tendency to destroy people's minds. They lose their sense of humanity, and love and all those good things until nothing but an empty, cruel shell is left." Pitch said. The implications of what he was saying slowly hit them. People turned against each other, looking out only for themselves... there would be war, definitely.

"The mind loses different virtues as more of it is destroyed. In fact, Jack has already lost the first virtue-Love. There is nothing you can do. Watch him be destroyed, watch me take over the world. Savour your last moments of having believers. All of that ends soon. Goodbye, guardians." Pitch's voice stopped, leaving a ringing silence in their ears.

"Why couldn't Frostbite wait just a minute so that one of us could of come with him? Then we wouldn't be in this mess!" Bunny raged.

"Enough, Bunny! We need to think what to do!" North yelled over him.

"But what? We don't know where Pitch is, or Jack, or... anything!" Tooth was yelling.

"Oh... Guardians. I almost forgot." Pitch's irritating voice was back.

"I devised a way for you to know just how far gone Jack is. Every time he loses another virtue, you will know. Trust me." Pitch's laughter filled the room again, slowly fading into the familiar silence.

_Jack has lost peace._

The simple statement echoed in the guardians minds. It was time to go take down Pitch. Sandy was signalling something in his sand; a picture of a home with children around it.

"We should check Burgess?" Bunny enquired. Sandy thought for a moment. _Libertas Derelicta, _his golden sand spelled out.

"The children s home! Of course!" Tooth gasped. The four of them exchanged looks. Bunny backed away.

"I'll take my tunnels, thanks." He said. North looked like he wanted to argue, but backed off. They didn't have time to argue.

XXX

The worst moments of Jack's life flashed before his eyes. Sandy dying. Him, drowning. His sister, calling his name. Bunny screaming at him. The constant ache of loneliness. People dying because of him. The Titanic sinking, the blizzard of '68, all the storms he lost control of. The look of betrayal on the guardians face when they thought he had betrayed them for Pitch. Everywhere, people dying, people blaming him, him losing control, all of it his fault.

XXX

The guardians walked cautiously down the halls of the children s home.

_Jack has lost humanity._

The time for caution was over. They rushed down the halls, body-checking open doors, running full out down the halls, not caring who they ran into. _We need to find Jack NOW! _North thought. His mind was working at full tilt, rushing through everything Jack had told him about this place, but nothing was coming up. What had he overlooked? He needed to figure it out soon!

_Jack has lost spirit._

XXX

It was so hard, so incredibly hard to hold on when all he wanted was to just stop feeling. The guilt washed over him. _Why me?_ Jack screamed inwardly. _Whenever it really counts, I make a mess of it. Why can't I do something right for a change? _But slowly, slowly, Jack's feelings of guilt were fading. People's lives, after all, were so insignificant compared to his, a voice in his brain whispered. It kept talking to him, telling him to just give up feeling that way. The harder he fought, the more insistently it whispered. He gave in, just for a moment. That was enough for it to start to take a hold.

XXX

Empty room after empty room flashed by. Bunny was working so fast, his heart was pounding like crazy. _When I see Frostbite, I swear I'll kill him! Right after I hug him. _Bunny thought. But the rooms were empty. _Where we wrong? Jack __could be anywhere. He could be in the desert, or in Peru, or Canada, or Mexico, or anywhere! _The doubts were steadily working their way into Bunnys wind.

_Jack has lost perseverance._

XXX

He wanted to keep going. It was just so hard. _Just stop trying. __Someone else will save everyone __for a change. You're not needed. _The voice whispered in his head. He had fought with everything he had. He couldn't for much longer. _Why even try?_ Life was too hard. He gave up.

XXX

_How could I let Jack out of my sight, e__ven for a moment? I should of known that he wouldn't listen. I have to find him before Pitch can hurt him! _Tooth was going from room to room using her super speed. Where was he?

_Jack has lost fun._

XXX

_ Why were snowball fights so much fun after all? The__y just ended up with you cold and wet, and hurting. Sometimes, bits of ice would even get in your eyes. They weren't so much fun after all. Neither was sledding. You could fall off your sled, and break bones or get scratched up if you weren't careful. And __ice skating... if you weren't careful, you can fall through the ice. Why did he bother freezing the water in the first place? If the water wasn't frozen, the kids wouldn't go skating, and couldn't fall through the ice. _All Jack could think of was how he had hurt, even killed people in the search for fun. _If I never try to have fun again, I can't hurt anyone else._

XXX

While the others buzzed around, panicking, Sandy thought. Jack wasn't in any of the rooms they searched. Sandy was sure he was here. Jack must be hidden. First, he checked the library for hidden bookcase doors. He checked one, two, three, four, five bookshelves. No luck. There was only one bookshelf left in the room that could be a hidden door. He pushed it aside.

It slid smoothly over, revealing a hidden room. Inside that room lay Jack. Sandy send out a wave of dream sand to fetch the other guardians. They arrived a minute later looking very stressed. They cried out in unison and went to sit beside Jack.

_Jack has lost kindness._

** And… the ****finale begins! There will probably be 1 or 2 more chapters, and an epilogue. I already have an idea for a sequel to this story, but I'm starting a one-shot collection tomorrow and am accepting prompts. So any ideas are much appreciated.**


	7. Shattering

**Previously... Jack is losing his mind. The guardians have just found him inside the children's home.**

The guardians sat beside Jack, trying to wake him up. He was lying there with his eyes wide open, staring at nothing. Not moving. He had a pulse, a weak one, but he wasn't dead. _What's going on? _Bunny thought. Then, Pitch moved out of the shadows.

"I see you have finally found him, guardians. Ha! You're too weak to fight me without him. And he will be nothing soon. As will the rest of the world. I can feel their fear already! You have no idea how good I feel right now!" Pitch's voice rose higher and lower dramatically. Bunny raced at Pitch with his boomerangs, and then before they knew what was happening, the four conscious guardians were fighting with everything they had. Sandy's sand whips were flying in every direction. Egg bombs were exploding, North's swords were flashing, and Tooth's wings were cutting through the nightmares that had appeared.

"Ha ha ha ha!" Pitch's laugh sounded above the din of the battle. The guardians glanced up. He had a little girl with blue eyes, curly brown hair, and pink skin. Something about her seemed familiar to the guardians.

"Rosie?" Tooth asked. _She always did such a good flossing job._ She remembered.

"Isn't Rosie the little girl Jack told us about?" North asked.

"Ya, but why can't she see us?" Bunny asked. His question was answered promptly.

"She thinks she's crazy, poor dear. And unfortunately, it's Jack's fault she thinks that." Pitch answered with an unconvincing smile that looked more like a grimace.

"Jack wouldn't do something like that!" Bunny yelled.

"But he did. If he hadn't shown himself to Rosie, and told him who she was, she wouldn't think that. If he had protected her, she wouldn't think she was crazy." Pitch answered smugly.

"No…" Tooth whispered.

XXX

_Everything was white and blank. All he could hear was the sound of children having fun. He walked toward the happy __noise. Soon, he was in Burgress. Jamie was there, and so were Pippa and Claude and Cupcake and all the other children. They were having a snowball fight._

_ "Hey Jack! Catch this!" Jamie yelled, throwing a snowball at Jack with unnerving force and accuracy._

_ "Oh no you don't!" Jack explained in mock horror. He threw a snowball back at Jamie._

_ ``I`ve been shot!`` Jamie yelled, clutching at his chest where Jack`s snowball had hit him. He looked down, and his smile faded to fear. A shard of ice was lodged all the way into his heart. Blood was slowly seeping out._

_ ``You`ve killed him!`Pippa yelled. And soon all the other children were screaming at him, and Jamie was sinking down lower and lower into the ground._

_ He had killed Jamie. All his fault. He embraced the blackness, the cold lack of feeling in his heart._

_Jack has lost family._

XXX

``Jack doesn't have much longer now guardians. Without him, you cannot stop me. I think I`ll take my leave. My sand is perfect, and soon darkness and terror will rule the world! But first, a parting gift.` Pitch said. A hundred fearing's materialized out of nowhere, and then he disappeared.

The guardians fought with everything they had, but they knew that they couldn`t fend off the fearlings and help Jack at the same time.

It was all over.

_Jack has lost guilt._

XXX

``The guardians are going to lose, Jack. So much easier to just give in and join me. So much easier than trying to piece the world back together. After all, what goes together better than cold and dark?" Pitch's mocking voice resounded inside Jacks head. He was unfeeling. He could hurt people, kill even and not feel bad. Pitch was right; joining him would be so much easier. But… he couldn't._ Why? _Jack searched his mind. He didn't know. All he knew was that he would keep fighting this until he couldn't anymore.

XXX

_Jack has lost-_

A flash of silvery light filled the small room. When the guardians looked up, all the nightmares were gone.

Vanished.

There was just one small problem.

So was Jack.

** Mwah ha ha ha! I am evil. Where is Jack? What happened to Rosie? What happened to the nightmares? What is Pitch really up to? Well, the epilogue should explain everything. It probably won't solve anything, though. Put your questions in a review, and I'll make sure to include them. Don't ask at your own risk. *Cracks up in insane laughter.***


	8. The End

**Previously... Jack is gone. Pitch is planning to take over the world. The nightmares are gone. Rosie is nowhere to be seen.**

_ Moments after the nightmares and Jack disappeared..._

"Uh... Where's Jack?" Bunny asked cautiously.

"And where did Rosie go? And the nightmares? And what was the flash of silver?" Tooth added. Their second question was soon answered. A shell shocked little girl pushed the door open.

"Who are you?" She asked Bunny.

"I'm the Easter bunny, mate." He answered. The little girl- Rosie- looked a bit confused.

"Why do you look like a kangaroo?" She asked. Bunny turned red and huffy.

"Frost put you up to that didn't he?" Bunny said.

"Yep." Rosie answered.

"Pitch said that you thought you were crazy." North said gently.

"I did. But... hallucinations aren't that real. I don't feel crazy. Logic tells me that I'm crazy. Something else tells me that you're all real." Rosie answered. The guardians exchanged glances.

"Where did Jack go?" She asked.

"We don't know, mate." Bunny answered.

"Oh." A silence fell over the room. Sandy was making images of the North pole, and the moon over his head.

"We have to go. Mim should be able to help us." Tooth translated.

"Bye Rosie." Bunny said. The four remaining guardians left, leaving Rosie alone. She sighed.

XXX

At the North Pole.

"Mim, what happened to Jack? What's going on?" North asked.

"Jack is with me. I'm trying to heal his mind. That will take some time, but eventually he will be returned to you. Pitch is still strong, but summoning all the nightmares took a toll on him. He will try to take over again, so you need to prepare. I need to go. Don't mourn for Jack. He will be fine." Mim told them telepathically. Of course, the guardians were relieved.

"But something is wrong. I can feel it in my belly." North said.

XXX

_Several weeks later…_

"I was examining some of the sand Pitch used on Jack." Sandy spelled out, to North.

"Yes, my friend?" North answered. His life had been a lot less interesting with no Jack around, but if Mim said Jack would be OK, then he would. Sometimes, North didn't trust even his own judgment, but Mim, he could trust…

Sandy was looking annoyed. He was trying to tell North something important, but he wasn't even listening! He grabbed an elf and shook it. The jingling seemed to shock North out of his reverie.

"As I was saying, when I was looking at the sand, I found out that Jack's mind should of shattered by the time Mim took him away. Even Jack's resistance wouldn't have been able to hold the nightmare sand off that long." Sandy spelled out.

"What are you saying?"

"Pitch's sand could create new fear. But, it would also feed off old fears." North nodded, not sure where this was going.

"Name one of the things Jack fears most." Sandy spelled.

"Failing us." North answered. A light of understanding dawned in his eyes.

"So the sand is trying to shatter Jack's mind, but at the same time, it's feeding off his old fears. Essentially, Jack's fear was the thing keeping him sane." Sandy spelled out.

"That's Jack."

XXX

_Several months later_

"I miss him." Tooth said.

"Same." Replied Bunny.

XXX

_Five years after Jack's disappearance_

"Is it possible…? Mim can fail?"

XXX

_After 50 years_

"Remember how you always used to be so mad at him for his silly pranks?" North sighed.

"I regret it every day." Bunny said sadly.

XXX

_Too late_

'D'ya think frostbite will be able to help us with all of… this? How will he react when he sees how much the world has changed?" Bunny asked the others.

"We have to accept it. Jack may not be coming back. Even if he does, how will he survive here?" North answered.

Silence, all around.

** So, that's the end of that miniseries. I will be posting a sequel, A Hundred Years Later, sometime soon; probably the first chapter will be up by late Wednesday. Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, and favourited this story! You're all amazing!**


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